Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him; he is my Savior and my God.
Psalm 42:11
When we find ourselves in a state of depression, emptiness, or deep pain, we typically have an internal dialogue similar to the Psalmist. We speak to our own souls, asking what is wrong, what triggered us, what is the root of our pain. This moment is quite beautiful, as noticing the disturbance within is acknowledging real emotional struggle that us humans are meant to feel—it is the moment we are truly honest with ourselves.
But once we notice our emotional dysregulation, rather than staying in that darkness, we can choose to turn to the light—to remember who God is, His will, and the ways He can save us. This practice of having internal conversations where we preach to ourselves becomes the deliberate choice to ‘put our hope in God,’ despite the heavy feelings we’re experiencing. Like the psalmist asking ‘Why, my soul, are you downcast?’ we learn to redirect our hearts toward truth rather than allowing our emotions to have the final word.
When everything feels dark, the moment we speak to God, turn to Him, or pray for healing, we discover that declaring ‘I will yet praise him’ shifts our perspective from present pain to future restoration. The repetition of this hope helps us combat all discouragement, as each time we revisit Him, we remember His character as our Savior and God and find hope in what He will eventually provide for us. Even when we cannot feel it, we choose to believe that praise will come again.
